State Sen. Dan Claitor, R-Baton Rouge, confirmed Wednesday he would enter the race for Louisiana's 6th District, raising concerns about "extremists" in Congress and in the candidate pool.

"I'm comfortable with saying I'm a candidate now," Claitor told NOLA.com | The Times-Picayune on Wednesday, noting he had to take time to discuss the issue with "not just my immediate family, but my entire family" before making a decision.

The seat in the 6th District, which covers a large swath of the
southeastern quadrant of the state including parts of Baton Rouge
and the river parishes, will be left vacant after Republican Congressman
Bill Cassidy steps down to challenge U.S. Sen. Mary Landrieu, D-La., next November.

Claitor said his family convinced him to run in order to bring some "reasonable people" to Congress. An unpredictable legislator known to weigh each individual bill based on merit and conscience, Claitor said he would continue this practice if elected.

"I think that the 6th is a district that wants people to make a decision based on the merits and not purely party politics," Claitor said, adding, "My philosophy is certainly a Republican one, but if someone else brings an idea to the table, I'm not going to ignore it because of the label (of) the proponent."

As a consequence, state Rep. Steve Carter, R-Baton Rouge, said Thursday he would no longer consider entering the race and would instead support Claitor in his bid.

"He obviously has had experience in the Senate; he's been very effective," Carter said of Claitor. "He works extremely well with others and he understands the issues. I think he'll do a great job (in Congress)."

Five other candidates made clear their intentions to enter the race before Claitor's Wednesday announcement. Multiple others are also mulling a run, including former Louisiana legislator and Family Research Council President Tony Perkins.

Referencing Perkins' rumored intentions, Claitor said he was "not excited" by the idea of "some of our candidates having questionable associations with certain hate groups." Perkins' Washington, DC-based FRC is a designated "anti-gay" hate group by the Southern Poverty Law Center.

"I don't want Louisiana to become the focus of the national media because we have extremists running for a particular office," he said, likening Perkins to former state legislator and KKK Grand Wizard David Duke, who grabbed headlines when he ran for governor and lost against Edwin Edwards in 1991.

Claitor won Cassidy's 16th district seat after he stepped down to run for Congress in 2008, besting a candidate hand-picked and
heavily endorsed by Gov. Bobby Jindal. Since then, the Baton Rouge lawyer has clashed with the Jindal administration on numerous occasions, a relationship he called "liberating."

On Thursday, Claitor said he considered dramatic flood insurance hikes authorized by Congress under the Biggert-Water Act to be the most pressing issue for the district.

"The flood insurance issue is huge for Louisiana, and I think that it's also very important for other parts of the nation," he said. "It's not just a coastal issue."